Court begins process of putting public records online

The Cayman Islands court system has begun the process of digitizing its court records and hopes to have all existing public registers online by the end of 2017.

Court administrator Suzanne Bothwell said Monday that web developers are in the process of building the website and making it capable of handling the influx of new court records. At the moment, visitors to www.judicial.ky can access cause lists, court rules, and court hours and locations.

“It is intended that all existing public registers will be viewable on the public side of the site,” Ms. Bothwell said in an email to the Cayman Compass. “A platform has to be built to facilitate this new service.”

Earlier this year there was some confusion as to which court records were available to the public and the methods by which they could be copied and published. The Cayman court system notified the public that only handwritten notes could be taken when inspecting public records in person, and they prohibited photocopying records unless the visitor had permission from the clerk of court.

Those changes to existing policy were short-lived, and the court indicated that it was concerned about outside publications making a profit by publishing the details of court records. The court maintained that wholesale reproduction of court records amounted to a violation of Crown copyright.

The Grand Court Rules Committee met this summer to consider new rules governing the access of public records, and according to Ms. Bothwell, it is currently awaiting feedback from the legal community. Once those rules have been finalized, they will be announced to the public.